Faurecia’s focus on lightweighting to improve fuel economy incorporates virtually every system inside, outside and under the car – even the exhaust pipe. Faurecia’s new Resonance Free Pipe (RFP™) contributes to this goal by eliminating the need for small silencers, known as resonators. Resonators inside tailpipes break long sound waves to reduce unwanted frequencies. RFP™ eliminates these long waves without resonators by venting acoustic pressure at the optimum point in the exhaust system through a micro-perforated material.

While most of the exhaust gas continues to exit the system through the tailpipe, this very minute venting of treated exhaust gas allows for a simpler system design that provides 2 to 5 kg of weight savings in a more compact package. RFP™ can potentially be used in any light-duty vehicle.

BENEFITS

RFP™ represents yet another innovative step on the road to further reducing the weight of vehicles to improve fuel efficiency and cutting CO2 emissions.

[summary] =>
[format] => full_html
[safe_value] =>

Faurecia’s focus on lightweighting to improve fuel economy incorporates virtually every system inside, outside and under the car – even the exhaust pipe. Faurecia’s new Resonance Free Pipe (RFP™) contributes to this goal by eliminating the need for small silencers, known as resonators. Resonators inside tailpipes break long sound waves to reduce unwanted frequencies. RFP™ eliminates these long waves without resonators by venting acoustic pressure at the optimum point in the exhaust system through a micro-perforated material.

While most of the exhaust gas continues to exit the system through the tailpipe, this very minute venting of treated exhaust gas allows for a simpler system design that provides 2 to 5 kg of weight savings in a more compact package. RFP™ can potentially be used in any light-duty vehicle.

BENEFITS

RFP™ represents yet another innovative step on the road to further reducing the weight of vehicles to improve fuel efficiency and cutting CO2 emissions.

World’s first at the Frankfurt Motor Show : Faurecia’s Exhaust Heat Power Generation (EHPG) system converts the heat from exhaust gas into electricity based on the principles of the Rankine cycle—an innovation designed to create cleaner, more efficient vehicles.

EHPG is directly inspired by the way a power plant works :

1/ Some 30% of the energy in fuel is lost as heat in the exhaust system. To improve vehicle efficiency, Faurecia has developed a solution to use this heat as an additional power source.

2/ The heat from exhaust gas is transferred to a fluid to produce pressurized steam.

3/ The pressurized steam powers a turbine, creating mechanical energy to drive the wheels of trucks or generate electricity for hybrid cars.

4/ The condenser cools the steam to turn it back into a liquid.

5/ The pump feeds the liquid back to the evaporator to close the loop.

"EHPG works like a power plant, but in this case we have adapted the technology to the highly specific challenges of cars and trucks, such as size, power, weight, etc. That is the real innovation." Luc Herbin, Chief Technology Officer at Faurecia Emissions Control Technologies

[summary] =>
[format] => full_html
[safe_value] =>

World’s first at the Frankfurt Motor Show : Faurecia’s Exhaust Heat Power Generation (EHPG) system converts the heat from exhaust gas into electricity based on the principles of the Rankine cycle—an innovation designed to create cleaner, more efficient vehicles.

EHPG is directly inspired by the way a power plant works :

1/ Some 30% of the energy in fuel is lost as heat in the exhaust system. To improve vehicle efficiency, Faurecia has developed a solution to use this heat as an additional power source.

2/ The heat from exhaust gas is transferred to a fluid to produce pressurized steam.

3/ The pressurized steam powers a turbine, creating mechanical energy to drive the wheels of trucks or generate electricity for hybrid cars.

4/ The condenser cools the steam to turn it back into a liquid.

5/ The pump feeds the liquid back to the evaporator to close the loop.

"EHPG works like a power plant, but in this case we have adapted the technology to the highly specific challenges of cars and trucks, such as size, power, weight, etc. That is the real innovation." Luc Herbin, Chief Technology Officer at Faurecia Emissions Control Technologies

It’s a fair point to say that air vents have hardly changed in the last 50 years. With DecoVent, Faurecia changes that, by extending interior customization to air vents.

DecoVent replaces classic visible air-vent vanes with a single horizontal or vertical blade and a totally hidden mechanism. Its technical performance both in pressure drop and in directivity are among the industry’s best.

The visible blade and the surrounding can be designed in many different fashions, including genuine materials, enhancing design options for vents and increasing flexibility as designers work to differentiate vehicle interiors. With the exterior of the vent accommodating a wide variety of designs, a similar architecture can be used for the mechanical components within.

The technology is now ready for production.

ADVANTAGES

With DecoVent, Faurecia offers designers full design freedom by integrating the mechanical elements of the vents behind the visible surface, creating new simple & clean ambiances within the cockpit. Technically, DecoVent performances are among the best of the market.

[summary] =>
[format] => full_html
[safe_value] =>

It’s a fair point to say that air vents have hardly changed in the last 50 years. With DecoVent, Faurecia changes that, by extending interior customization to air vents.

DecoVent replaces classic visible air-vent vanes with a single horizontal or vertical blade and a totally hidden mechanism. Its technical performance both in pressure drop and in directivity are among the industry’s best.

The visible blade and the surrounding can be designed in many different fashions, including genuine materials, enhancing design options for vents and increasing flexibility as designers work to differentiate vehicle interiors. With the exterior of the vent accommodating a wide variety of designs, a similar architecture can be used for the mechanical components within.

The technology is now ready for production.

ADVANTAGES

With DecoVent, Faurecia offers designers full design freedom by integrating the mechanical elements of the vents behind the visible surface, creating new simple & clean ambiances within the cockpit. Technically, DecoVent performances are among the best of the market.

"Less is more" technology aims to lower fuel consumption, leading to a drop in CO2 emissions, by focusing on two key areas: weight savings and energy efficiency.

Faurecia is working on energy-efficiency solutions to recover part of the thermal energy that is typically dissipated as exhaust heat, which can then be used to accelerate engine-warming time and heat the vehicle interior. The Group is also developing new technologies to turn recovered heat into electrical or mechanical power that can be immediately used by the vehicle.

More specifics on the demonstrator's innovations:

Lightweight seat with optimized architecture: Weighs 35% less than a conventional seat structure

Advantages

Through new product architectures and optimized design, in addition to the development and use of alternative materials and new production processes, Faurecia is set to offer weight reductions of up to 100 kg per vehicle, cutting CO2 emissions by 10 g/km.

"Less is more" technology aims to lower fuel consumption, leading to a drop in CO2 emissions, by focusing on two key areas: weight savings and energy efficiency.

Faurecia is working on energy-efficiency solutions to recover part of the thermal energy that is typically dissipated as exhaust heat, which can then be used to accelerate engine-warming time and heat the vehicle interior. The Group is also developing new technologies to turn recovered heat into electrical or mechanical power that can be immediately used by the vehicle.

More specifics on the demonstrator's innovations:

Lightweight seat with optimized architecture: Weighs 35% less than a conventional seat structure

Advantages

Through new product architectures and optimized design, in addition to the development and use of alternative materials and new production processes, Faurecia is set to offer weight reductions of up to 100 kg per vehicle, cutting CO2 emissions by 10 g/km.

The transformation of the Human Machine Interface is already underway as smart surfaces with integrated electronics enhance occupants’ connectivity. Faurecia’s Intuition demonstrator integrates many of its connected, functional and decorative technologies to give a glimpse of the cockpit of the future.

Intuition combines high-contrast, swiveling screens with black-panel technology, switchless controls on decorative surfaces, relaxation choices in seating and convenient options for charging handheld devices. Natural fibers and new surface materials such as the real-stone instrument panel add to Intuition’s sleek design and demonstrate Faurecia’s expertise in the seamless integration of materials and technologies.

“Intuition serves as a key pathway on Faurecia’s roadmap for autonomous driving, demonstrating how drivers can readily interact with the cockpit of the future through smart surfaces and functional decoration. We have had a unanimously positive reaction to the way we have integrated innovative connectivity features into a vehicle interior using state-of –the-art technologies and materials”, says Andreas Wlasak, Faurecia Vice President of Design.

Ultra-thin and invisible screens

Intuition’s center console demonstrates a high-definition active-matrix organic LED (AMOLED) touch screen that is merged with decorative elements. The cluster area screen (behind the steering-wheel) is also an AMOLED screen with glass surface. These screens offer higher contrast ratios and consume less power than their predecessors and can be shaped as curved displays. Ultra-thin, the screens are constructed from two plastic materials bonded together to form a rigid screen with high-quality optics.

Black-panel screens are seamlessly integrated to resemble dark surfaces until they become visible when activated as bright, full-color touch screens. A decorative, thin black-panel TFT screen runs across a portion of the instrument panel to display information to the passenger from a phone or the infotainment system. These screens were developed in partnership with Magneti Marelli to bring together displays and electronics.

Smart, touch-sensitive surfaces

In the Intuition cockpit, Faurecia has developed innovation to convert wood, aluminum, fabric or plastic into a smart surface so that conventional controls are replaced with touch-sensitive, capacitive switches integrated into the decorative surface, such as in the DecoControl Alu control panel. When these switches are used to turn on air conditioning, for example, they provide a haptic and visual response through a vibration and illumination indicating for example the activation of the heating or cooling system. These same smart surfaces can bring ambient light to the cockpit.

Transforming interior to adapt to different driving conditions

While Intuition’s smart controls make driving easier, its seat makes driving much more relaxing and comfortable. The driver’s seat position automatically adjusts to driving mode, with massage, heat and ventilation. When the car is in partial hands-free mode, the seat can slide backward, bringing the center console with it so that the center screen remains within reach. The driver then can rotate the center screen for a better view.

Always connected

The console is equipped with a charging slot for mobile devices that casts phone-based navigation and other information via MirrorLink to the central touch screen, using near-field and Bluetooth communication. Additionally, devices can be charged in a slide-out docking station or—for rear-seat passengers—in a door panel compartment.

[summary] =>
[format] => full_html
[safe_value] =>

The transformation of the Human Machine Interface is already underway as smart surfaces with integrated electronics enhance occupants’ connectivity. Faurecia’s Intuition demonstrator integrates many of its connected, functional and decorative technologies to give a glimpse of the cockpit of the future.

Intuition combines high-contrast, swiveling screens with black-panel technology, switchless controls on decorative surfaces, relaxation choices in seating and convenient options for charging handheld devices. Natural fibers and new surface materials such as the real-stone instrument panel add to Intuition’s sleek design and demonstrate Faurecia’s expertise in the seamless integration of materials and technologies.

“Intuition serves as a key pathway on Faurecia’s roadmap for autonomous driving, demonstrating how drivers can readily interact with the cockpit of the future through smart surfaces and functional decoration. We have had a unanimously positive reaction to the way we have integrated innovative connectivity features into a vehicle interior using state-of –the-art technologies and materials”, says Andreas Wlasak, Faurecia Vice President of Design.

Ultra-thin and invisible screens

Intuition’s center console demonstrates a high-definition active-matrix organic LED (AMOLED) touch screen that is merged with decorative elements. The cluster area screen (behind the steering-wheel) is also an AMOLED screen with glass surface. These screens offer higher contrast ratios and consume less power than their predecessors and can be shaped as curved displays. Ultra-thin, the screens are constructed from two plastic materials bonded together to form a rigid screen with high-quality optics.

Black-panel screens are seamlessly integrated to resemble dark surfaces until they become visible when activated as bright, full-color touch screens. A decorative, thin black-panel TFT screen runs across a portion of the instrument panel to display information to the passenger from a phone or the infotainment system. These screens were developed in partnership with Magneti Marelli to bring together displays and electronics.

Smart, touch-sensitive surfaces

In the Intuition cockpit, Faurecia has developed innovation to convert wood, aluminum, fabric or plastic into a smart surface so that conventional controls are replaced with touch-sensitive, capacitive switches integrated into the decorative surface, such as in the DecoControl Alu control panel. When these switches are used to turn on air conditioning, for example, they provide a haptic and visual response through a vibration and illumination indicating for example the activation of the heating or cooling system. These same smart surfaces can bring ambient light to the cockpit.

Transforming interior to adapt to different driving conditions

While Intuition’s smart controls make driving easier, its seat makes driving much more relaxing and comfortable. The driver’s seat position automatically adjusts to driving mode, with massage, heat and ventilation. When the car is in partial hands-free mode, the seat can slide backward, bringing the center console with it so that the center screen remains within reach. The driver then can rotate the center screen for a better view.

Always connected

The console is equipped with a charging slot for mobile devices that casts phone-based navigation and other information via MirrorLink to the central touch screen, using near-field and Bluetooth communication. Additionally, devices can be charged in a slide-out docking station or—for rear-seat passengers—in a door panel compartment.